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Project Narrative Description Charge Spot is intended to demonstrate the feasibility of an autonomous electric vehicle charging system for residential use. The goal of Charge Spot is to have no user interaction and no physical connection between the car and the charging station. Remembering to charge your electric vehicle every day is hard enough as it is. And if you forgot to charge it overnight you may not make it to work the next day. Also the task of undoing cables and precisely aiming and connecting charge connectors can be a bit of a hassle sometimes. Charge Spot is designed to eliminate these concerns and also include added features necessary for peace of mind. This is a hands-free, intelligent charging system, capable of fully charging your electric vehicle without human intervention. All you do is park your car as you would normally and the rest is taken care of. A proximity sensor detects the presence of a vehicle and immediately activates Bluetooth connectivity between the car and the charge panel. While Bluetooth pairing is underway, the car is being guided into place by the proximity sensor with a visual aid indicating proper alignment of both the car coil and the ground coil. Upon successful pairing, the battery status and temperature information is sent from the car to the panel via Bluetooth. After preset parameters for battery temperature is met, and battery status is determined to be less than 100%, the charging system is activated and the car battery will be charged with the high resonance frequency charging system. Battery status is monitored and displayed on the panel along with battery temperature. When fully charged the charging system is designed to shut down automatically. List of Specifications 1. Proximity sensor capable of detecting car within 5 feet of panel 2. Coil attached to car small and lightweight (approx. 2lbs) 3. A fail safe, shut down switch 4. Maximize charge time by adjusting charge current based on battery level 5. Battery status displayed on panel using 11-segment and LED bar displays 6. Proximity status for alignment displayed on panel 7. Battery temperature displayed on panel 8. No physical cable connectivity between car and charge system 9. Automatic shutdown when fully charged 10. Car should begin charging within 10 seconds of successful alignment 11. Eliminates trip hazard 1
Block Diagram Physical Connections This is a very rough display of the prototype of our project. Each piece is explained in further detail below; this diagram just shows the physical connections of each component in the systems. If we opt for the two optional MCUs, instead of using one in each system, the blue line will represent the new connections, and the previously used black lines will become obsolete. Not shown is exactly how each component will be setup, or physically mounted. The entire ground system, except the electromagnetic coils and the power source, will be housed in a metal box, with a cutout for the LED display. The car system will be mounted for concealment. The two coils will be housed in a special encasing which we are still researching. Block Diagram Component Details On the next page is the detail block diagram. 2
Test Vehicle & Battery We will be using a Power Wheels with its stock battery for this design. Of course there will be alterations to the vehicle itself to support our devices. Device Enclosures/ Integration Charge Controller A device used to control the current flow from the coil so as not to damage the battery. May have its own MCU. AC/DC Converter Used to convert the car system coil's AC current to the necessary DC value. Car System Bluetooth T/R A bluetooth transmitter/receiver used to communicate with the ground system. Research Design Microcontroller Temperature Sensor A temperature measuring device physically attached to the battery that will communicate with the MCU. Obtaining Acquired Volt Meter A voltage measuring device, or some other apparatus, to ascertain the charge level of the battery, and communicate with the MCU. Prototype Completed Car Encasing for Coil Coil The copper coil that will be used for the wireless transmission of energy; corresponding to the coil in the ground system. Default / Everyone Emelio Device Enclosures/ Integration Display Display using 11-segment displays and/or LED bar displays to show relevant data to user. Ryan Theo Microcontroller Proximity Sensor Most likely an IR sensor that will determine certain displays for the user. Ground System Bluetooth T/R A bluetooth transmitter/reciever used to communicate with the car system. Source (Outlet) Oscillator To make the High Resonance Frequency Charging work by converting the outlet's 120V 60Hz to the necessary values. Ground Encasing for Coil Coil Same as the car system, but corresponding to the coil in the car system. 3
Block Diagram Data Flows Input Proximity Sensor Data Manipulation Ground System MCU Output Display Figure 1: Data Flow 1 Input Data Manipulation Data Send Data Retrieve Data Manipulation Output Temperature Sensor Voltage Measurement Car System MCU Car System Bluetooth Ground System Bluetooth Ground System MCU Display Figure 2: Data Flow 2 Car pulls into garage Current is drawn from Outlet Source and goes through Oscillator for starting the High Resonance Frequency Charging in the ground system coil AC current from the car system coil goes through an AC/DC converter in the charge controller Proximity sensor is activated Data Flow 1 GS-MCU determines if battery is okay to be charged Status is displayed Charging will start at this point Charge controller uses "check & charge" system to charge battery Data Flow 2 occurs during check phase, however temperature check is always occuring Car is guided into garage with feedback from display Bluetooth is automatically syncing Ground system MCU communicates to car system MCU Data Flow 2 Upon 100% charge check, the current going through the coils will be turned off Data Flow 2 will keep display updated Figure 3: Sequence of events 4
Budget Budget - $600 $100 $250 $75 $75 $100 $50 $25 $25 Copper/Coil/Wiring Vehicle/Battery Sensors Encasings/Integration Display MCUs Bluetooth Devices The generous budget to the copper coil and wiring is due to the necessity of the amount we need. The coil itself with either be molded by us or bought that way, depending on cost and availability. The wires will also be a special wire used solely by the coils; this does not include the wiring for other devices. The vehicle we will be using will be a PowerWheels with its stock battery. We will be obtaining a used, working one preferably for a sound amount of money, which will be a challenge considering recent Craigslist postings. The sensors, display, MCUs, and Bluetooth chips are given a bloated budget, just in case they don t work and we need to acquire another, or a different type. The sensor has a considerably larger budget because we re not sure of the type of proximity sensor to use we can use either the more accurate and more expensive laser sensor, or the cheaper infrared sensor. As for the display, this includes all the LED Bar displays and the 11-segment displays. However, since we cannot find suitable LED bar displays, we may make our own. The encasings/integration involves the encasing of the two coils and the encasing of the display. This slice basically involves the cost of putting everything together, soldering and wiring cost, the cost of physical parts used for encasing (wood frame, metal box), and possibly the cost of labor required, if applicable. 5
Project Milestones Task Name Duration Start Finish 1) Definition 2 weeks Tue Sept 3 rd 2013 Mon Sept 9 th 2013 Define project 2 weeks Tue Sept 3 rd 2013 Mon Sept 9 th 2013 2) Research 8 weeks Mon Sept 16 th 2013 Sun Nov 10 th 2013 Type of Vehicle 2 weeks Mon Sept 16 th 2013 Sun Sept 29 th 2013 Blue Tooth T/R 3 weeks Mon Sept 16 th 2013 Sun Oct 6 TH 2013 Temperature Sensor 3 weeks Mon Sept 16 th 2013 Sun Oct 6 TH 2013 Charge Controller 2 weeks Mon Oct 7 th 2013 Sun Oct 20 th 2013 Volt Meter 3 weeks Mon Oct 7 th 2013 Sun Oct 28 th 2013 Type of Coil 3 weeks Mon Oct 13 th 2013 Sun Oct 3 rd 2013 Display 3 weeks Mon Oct 13 th 2013 Sun Oct 3 rd 2013 Proximity Sensor 3 weeks Mon Oct 13 th 2013 Sun Oct 3 rd 2013 MCU 3 weeks Mon Oct 21 st 2013 Sun Nov 10 th 2013 3) Design 6 weeks Mon Nov 11 th 2013 Sun Dec 22 nd 2013 Hardware 6 weeks Mon Nov 11 th 2013 Sun Dec 22 nd 2013 Oscillator 6 weeks Mon Nov 11 th 2013 Sun Dec 22 nd 2013 Blue tooth 6 weeks Mon Nov 11 th 2013 Sun Dec 22 nd 2013 Charge Controller 6 weeks Mon Nov 11 th 2013 Sun Dec 22 nd 2013 Software 6 weeks Mon Nov 11 th 2013 Sun Dec 22 nd 2013 Microcontroller 6 weeks Mon Nov 11 th 2013 Sun Dec 22 nd 2013 4) Prototype 9 weeks Mon Jan 6 th 2014 Sun Mar 9 TH 2014 Hardware 9 weeks Mon Jan 6 th 2014 Sun Mar 9 TH 2014 Oscillator 9 weeks Mon Jan 6 th 2014 Sun Mar 9 TH 2014 Blue tooth 9 weeks Mon Jan 6 th 2014 Sun Mar 9 TH 2014 Charge Controller 9 weeks Mon Jan 6 th 2014 Sun Mar 9 TH 2014 Software 9 weeks Mon Jan 6 th 2014 Sun Mar 9 TH 2014 Microcontroller 9 weeks Mon Jan 6 th 2014 Sun Mar 9 TH 2014 5) Test 3 weeks Mon Mar 10 th 2014 Sun Mar 30 th 2014 Whole System 3 weeks Mon Mar 10 th 2014 Sun Mar 30 th 2014 6) Final 2 week Mon Mar 31th 2014 Sun April 13 TH 2014 Documentation 2 week Mon Mar 31th 2014 Sun April 13 TH 2014 Presentation 2 week Mon Mar 31th 2014 Sun April 13 TH 2014 6